From Our Signing Day Blogs

New D-Line coach Terry Price excited about recruits

New Texas Tech defensive line coach Terry Price is excited about what the team has added up front in its 2012 class.

The Red Raiders signed a pair of defensive tackles Wednesday, including J.J. Bynum and Anthony Smith.

Price said the first thing he did when he was hired last month was catch up with them.

“I saw a lot of eagerness,” Price said. “Two d-tackle commits, I’m excited about them. Big, physical guys who come off and strike you. Can get off a block and make plays. I’m excited about getting those guys down here and putting them to work.”

Price has spent 14 years of his career working with head coach Tommy Tuberville.

“I just know what kind of guy he is,” Price said. “He’s not just a great coach, a great football mind but he’s also a great maker of men. That’s one thing a lot of these recruits understand and know. That’s why parents send their kids here as 18 year old boys, but he’s going to help develop them into 21-, 22-year-old men. That’s one thing coach Tuberville is great about. I’m excited to be back with him, with this program and excited to be a Red Raider.”

Snyder native Cumbie welcomes hometown product Ward

Snyder’s Keenon Ward has officially signed his letter of intent to attend Texas Tech in the fall.

Ward played quarterback for the Tigers but is expected to play inside receiver for Tech.

Inside receivers coach Sonny Cumbie, also a Snyder native, loved what he saw from Ward during the past year.

“In the last year since he committed to us he’s really grown a lot,” Cumbie said. “He’s getting a little taller, put on a lot of muscle mass. He’s just athletic with the ball in his hands. He changes directions phenomenal. He really kind of picked up the team last fall and put them on his back. He’s a competitor, a winner and can make plays.”

Cumbie enjoyed recruiting Ward out of his hometown.

“It was awesome,” Cumbie said. “I loved it. I love going down there and killing two birds with one stone, seeing family and recruiting him. Just bringing a guy from here, being a Red Raider is going to be important to him coming here. I enjoyed it and I’m proud of Keenon for the kid that he is and where he is coming.”

Ward is listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds. He rushed for 1,769 yards and 23 touchdowns and passed for 780 yards and 11 touchdowns his senior year.

He also drew interest from TCU, Houston, Baylor and Louisiana Tech.

New defensive backs coach Lovett scouts Newbold, Awe

Texas Tech defensive backs coach John Lovett wasted no time expressing what it is he believes the Red Raiders need on defense.

“We see a lot of three and four wide receiver sets,” Lovett said, “play after play after play that you need guys that can have ability to stay close to receivers so you can get some rush on the quarterback.

“Everybody what they do nowadays is they spread you out to run the ball and if you don’t spread out enough they’re going to throw the ball outside and you still have to go make tackles. ... and instead of tackling a guy in a phone booth you’ve got to tackle him out in space as big as this building. You have to have guys with athletic ability that are able to do that.”

One person Lovett hopes will be able to do that is La’Darius Newbold, a cornerback from Lancaster.

Lovett had quite a bit to say about the talented addition.

“La’Darius to me would have a chance to play several spots in the secondary,” Lovett said. “He’s going to be big enough and he’s going to grow into his body type and grow into where he can be a very physical safety. Right now I think he could play nickel, come off the edge, blitz and cover in the slot, things like that. And then we just have to see on the outside how he would hold up out there.

“He’s played some corner in high school and he’s very fast. He’s a track guy and things like that. We could get him up tight coverage and take some things off and just let him run with guys. It’s kind of for him it’s what can he do outside. I already got an idea he can play those two inside slots for us really well and be very productive there. Again, we may not have that luxury, we may have to play him outside. We’ll have to see. I mean for him because he’s got such a big body I’d like to get him closer to the ball because it’s easier.”

Tech also signed linebacker Micah Awe from Mansfield Summit. Lovett said Awe might be used in the secondary, instead. Coaches are going to evaluate him at both linebacker and defensive back, Lovett said.

“You just have to see what the kid can do once he gts here,” Lovett said. “He may not be able to see because of the size of linemen as he did in high school. You got to look at all those things. He does have the athletic ability to play in space.”

Texas Tech assistant coach Robert Prunty was also excited about Tech’s cornerback haul.

“In the secondary we need some guys that can cover,” Prunty said, “that can get up on the wide receiver and bump them and run with the receivers. We had guys developing at Tech but we got some immediate help along with some guys that can play in space. We needed speed and we got speed.”